


Cynthia's crappy life

by Anonymous



Category: Club Penguin
Genre: Additional Warnings In Author's Note, But instead turned into this, Gen, I'm too lazy to add them here xP, It's basically the pov's life story, Mental Health Issues, No beta reader, Op:Bo happens at the very end though, Operation Blackout (Club Penguin), This was meant to be a fic about Op:Bo, Which ones will be in the Authour's notes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-26
Updated: 2020-03-26
Packaged: 2021-02-28 17:08:57
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,446
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23320723
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: Cynthia's life has always been rough. Her past made it difficult for her to connect to other penguins. To trust them. To truly care for them.All she wants is a darn break. But is she getting one? No, 'cause I'm cruel to my characters.
Relationships: Only platonic relationships here baby
Kudos: 2
Collections: Anonymous





	Cynthia's crappy life

**Author's Note:**

> Trigger warnings:  
> Mental health issues  
> Depression  
> Self esteem-issues  
> Anxiety disorder  
> (these all are just briefly mentioned once or twice though)  
> Bad parenting (briefly mentioned)  
> Suspecting abusive relationship (as in, A wonders if B is in one. They're not, but A doesn't know)

Cynthia's life has always been rough. Her past made it difficult for her to connect to other penguins. To trust them. To truly care for them.

Having ever-absent parents since early childhood who would only show up to have a shouting match with each other, lead to major self-esteem issues and eventually depression in her teen years.

During high school she had been in an incredibly bad place, which she would probably still be in if it weren't for Linus, her only friend and one of the very few positive aspects about her childhood.

Still, even with his help, she struggled to live a normal life, demons of her past coming back again and again to haunt her.

With how messed up she was, it was a miracle she managed to get a job.

It had been Linus' idea for her to work at the pet shop. “If you tell your boss you'd rather take care of the puffles than assist the customers, I'm sure he'd understand.”  
And, to Cynthia's surprise, b̶̶e̶̶c̶̶a̶̶u̶̶s̶̶e̶̶ ̶̶s̶̶i̶̶n̶̶c̶̶e̶̶ ̶̶w̶̶h̶̶e̶̶n̶̶ ̶̶w̶̶o̶̶u̶̶l̶̶d̶̶ ̶̶s̶̶o̶̶m̶̶e̶̶o̶̶n̶̶e̶̶ ̶̶a̶̶c̶̶t̶̶u̶̶a̶̶l̶̶l̶̶y̶̶ ̶̶l̶̶i̶̶s̶̶t̶̶e̶̶n̶̶ ̶̶t̶̶o̶̶ ̶̶h̶̶e̶̶r̶̶ ̶̶a̶̶b̶̶o̶̶u̶̶t̶̶ ̶̶w̶̶h̶̶a̶̶t̶̶ ̶̶s̶̶h̶̶e̶̶ ̶̶n̶̶e̶̶e̶̶d̶̶s? he did. He didn't even ask questions, simply telling her that she'd never have to deal with them unless she felt comfortable to (something that would happen more and more as time went on).

Then Linus introduced Mike to her, a penguin he'd met by quite literally running into them.

Linus liked Mike, Cynthia could tell, and wanted to befriend them. Wanted Cynthia to befriend them. And Cynthia complied, because if it made Linus happy… it would be worth it, right?

At the beginning, it was hard for her to adapt to the sudden third party. Mike, with her smirk, joking mannerism, challenging eyes.

It sent a shiver through her body, every time she saw him.

It took some time for her to realize that Mike… wasn't a bad person. Was actually a good one. Sure, he could set off some of her triggers, but… he didn't actually want to hurt anyone. And he noticed when he'd make her feel uncomfortable. Would adapt to it. Would make sure she felt safe around him.

And then she realized… she liked Mike. Trusted Mike.

It was… scary. New. She felt vulnerable. And… happy.

Mike made her happy. Truly, genuinely happy. Happy in a way only few things made her.

And she decided she liked that. Liked having Mike around. Liked calling them as her friend.

Her life seemed better after that. She had a stable job, understanding and respectful co workers (except for Jerry. We do not talk about Jerry), amazing friends and, since recently, a white puffle who would provide her with comfort no one else could.

Some time passed. There were ups and downs. It was generally good.

Mike then wanted to introduce them to a new friend of his. “They're great,” he had said. “You'll guys love them.”

So that's how Akira joined the group. Akira with their impulsivity and disastrous energy.

Some would think that, because of that, getting used to them would be even harder for Cynthia. But it was quite the opposite, actually.

Maybe it was because she was getting better at interacting with others in general. Maybe it was because she could tell they were struggling with their mental health as well.

Sure, they were pretty good at hiding it with a joke or laughter. But Cynthia saw the way they'd jump at sudden noises or movements. How they always seemed three steps away from an emotional breakdown. The bags under their eyes. The stress they put themselves under.  
They were most likely suffering from severe anxiety.

And Cynthia could sympathize with them.

Still, only because she got used to Akira, it didn't mean she trusted them. She could, after all, also tell they were hiding something from them.

Sure, Cynthia wasn't one to judge. She herself prefered to keep most things to herself, no matter how much she trusted her friends.

But Akira's case was something else.

They seemed constantly busy, often cancelling plans or not participating in them in the first place. And when they did, it wasn't rare that they would have to suddenly leave, offering no to little explanation.

Of course, Cynthia got suspicious, starting to observe them more closely, trying to figure out what was going on. And - dear heaven, were those bruises?

That's when the suspicion turned into fear.

Where did these injuries coming from? Were they in an abusive relationship? Was that why they were always so absent? Were they not safe?

The others had noticed it too, and were just as worried. They decided to have Mike ask Akira about it - hoping it would be easier for them to open up that way.

Mike came back to them. Saying Akira had claimed to be safe. That they hadn't offered much more explanation besides “I can't tell you everything about me”, and that “you shouldn't worry about it”.

Which, of course, is exactly what Cynthia did. She had half the mind to go to ask them herself, because maybe she could catch something that Mike hadn't been able to? Maybe they'd let something slip? Maybe they'd even tell her what was going on when they saw how many people were actually worried about them.

But she didn't. Because, as much as she was worried for them, she couldn't imagine that Akira would actually tell her something they hadn't told Mike.

So life went on. Cynthia went to her job. Took care of her puffle. Even went to the dojo with Linus, something she enjoyed much more than she thought she would. She met new people there, Sam and Larry, who she would eventually, in a not so distant future, consider her friends.  
Mike got a few promotions. Linus discovered a love for music. And hey, Akira seemed to be doing better. They even adopted two puffles. In Cynthia's book, life was alright.

Until it wasn't.

It had started with the kidnapping of Gary the gadget guy, one of the most famous citizens of Club Penguin. Then the polar bear, Herbert, showed up, declaring himself the new ruler of the island. From, there, things only went south.

There were many things Herbert disliked and prohibited. Puffles were one of them.

Over the years, she had grown to love these little creatures more and more. So when she heard the danger they were potentially in, she didn't hesitate to do everything in her power to help them.

The only thing she could think of was taking as many of them as she could home with her. Her coworkers did the same, and soon there were no puffles left in the pet shop. Cynthia knew it'd be difficult to take care of so many of them. But if it meant that they were out of harm's way, it would be worth it.

Then Akira showed up on her igloo one night, shaking and eyes cried-out.

They held their puffles in their flippers, as they begged her to take care of them.

Cynthia was both confused and surprised. Why would they ask her to do that? They knew how many puffles she had to take care of. And why couldn't they do it themselves?

But Akira was persistent, saying that they were scared something would happen to them. Suspected it, even. And that they needed to at least have the reassurance that their puffles would be okay.

Which made Cynthia even more confused, so much that she agreed to their request. It was only hours later, when the confusion had worn of, that she started to become worried. Why had Akira been so sure they were in danger? Surely they weren't, right? It had probably been due to their anxiety which she had always suspected them of having.

And then Akira disappeared.

They weren't the first - other cases of missing penguins had popped up on the island before, but Cynthia had payed them no mind, preoccupied with her own, the puffles' and her friends' safety.

Only that now one of these friends was gone. And Cynthia couldn't help but ask herself if she could've prevented it. If it was her fault that Akira was gone. If she could've done more that night in which they had asked for her help.

But now it was too late. Akira was gone. And it was only now that she realized how much they actually meant to her.

Cynthia's life has always been rough. Her past made it difficult for her to connect to other penguins. To trust them. To truly care for them. And now one of the few who had managed to achieve that, was gone.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading this fic. Though I don't think many will...  
> Either way, since I'm currently hyperfixating on cp, I might write more. Cynthia wouldn't be the mc though, Akira would. Unless you guys really like Cynthia, then I might change up the story ig. No promises though.  
> If you liked it, leave a kudos or comment, I'm in constant need of validation


End file.
